


Watchdog

by ottermo



Category: Humans (TV)
Genre: Gen, Interseries, when will series 2 come to meeee
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-20
Updated: 2016-08-20
Packaged: 2018-08-10 00:34:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 897
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7823359
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ottermo/pseuds/ottermo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Joe's been posted as a lookout while Mattie does the latest of her Crazy Things. He soon finds that he's not the only person watching the building.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Watchdog

**Author's Note:**

> I'm killing time waiting for series 2 by imagining ways in which the two families could run into each other again - in terms of one-on-one meetings, that's 25 possible Elster/Hawkins combinations.
> 
> Some are obviously going to be more contrived than others. Like this one.
> 
> But we'll see how it goes! First up are Joe and Niska. This is probably the longest I've ever tried to write in Joe's POV, and I still didn't make it to 1k ;)

 

By the third hour of his watch, Joe’s wishing he'd gone undercover as somebody wearing a scarf. There's been no sign of Mattie's target since he arrived at his position - in fact, the only person who's come out of the building is a middle-aged woman holding a bag of cleaning supplies, and Joe has to assume that Milo Khoury, rising star of the business world, doesn't moonlight in drag as a janitor of his own office. 

Which means he's still at work, even at this time of night, which in turn means Mattie's suspicions are probably correct. Something crooked this way comes. Joe exhales in frustration, his breath swirling silver into the cold night. Proud as he is of her quick-thinking and inquisitive brain, it would be so much safer if Mattie would just...keep her head down. Just for a bit.

As it is, he's grateful to be in on this mission, even in the capacity of watchdog. Toby and Laura are stationed on the back exit, and Harun is poised to be Mattie's lookout if Khoury does exit, leaving her an opportunity to make her move. It's all cloak and dagger, completely mad stuff, but Mattie's unstoppable when she gets an idea in her head, and at least she's stopped trying to go it alone. She's collected enough intel by now that whenever they next run into the Elsters, they'll be able to make themselves useful. But if she could get something on Khoury, it would change everything - they could go straight to the authorities, solve half the Elsters' legal problems without even having to touch base with them.

And to think Joe had believed it was over when they'd waved the synths off at the crypt. 

He's shivering into his too-thin jacket close to 10pm when he finally sees movement: but not someone coming out of the building. The figure, dressed in dark clothes and a hood to hide the face, is sticking to the shadows on the opposite side of the road. A few moments after Joe spots them, they freeze completely, and Joe nonchalantly turns his head to pretend he hasn't been watching, even walking away for a few paces to show how much of a threat he isn't. 

He's about to circle back to his position when he's struck from behind, and a strong arm comes around his mouth to stop him crying out. He can't hear any breathing, and has no trouble believing that the hands pressing down on him are plastic and metal, but this sort of attack from a synth doesn't make any sense, unless – 

Too short to be Max, too slight to be Fred, and really not the kind of thing he’d expect from Mia. Leo breathes air, so... “Niska?” he tries, only it’s muffled against the sleeve of his assailant and it comes out more like, “Ifff’a?”

Apparently that’s close enough, because she drops her hold momentarily, and swivels him to face her so fast that he feels like a schoolboy again, spun around to face whatever grownup he’d been ‘giving cheek’ to. Underneath the cloth of her hood, he can make out Niska’s face, but not the glowing green eyes of a synth - she must still be in contacts.

“You,” she says, as though he’s a surprise.

“Me,” Joe agrees. “Hello. D’you mind-- putting me down?”

She lets go of his arms. “What are you doing here?” she demands.

Joe rubs the back of his neck to get some feeling back to it, hopes her near strangle-hold wont leave any bruises. “It’s Mattie, she’s watching the building. Thinks this Milo bloke’s up to something.”

Niska looks gratified. “She’s right.”

Joe shrugs. “She usually is.” He glances towards the building behind them. “Are you going in? Because you should let Mattie know.” _I’d rather you went than her_ , he adds silently. “Don’t want you surprising each other while you’re skulking around in there.”

Her eyes narrow. “None of you should be here. It could get dangerous.”

“Why, what are you planning?”

“It’s not what _I’m_ planning,” Niska says, coldly. “It’s Khoury. I can stop him, but I need a clear run.” She holds his gaze, firm and clear in her intentions.

Joe nods. “OK.” His hand feels for his pocket, and Niska watches him with suspicion until she sees he’s only going for his phone. Joe wonders with a shiver what kind of life she’s been living all these months, that’s made her so jumpy, so distrusting, even of someone she once viewed as something close to an ally.

Mattie answers on the second ring. “Dad? Is he out, did you see him go?”

“No,” he says quickly. “No movement this end.”

“Then what--“

“Look, Mats, there’s someone you should speak to,” Joe says. He holds the phone away from him, and says in a low voice to Niska as he hands it over, “I’ll never convince her to drop it. You might.”

And so Niska takes his phone, and lifts it to her ear, and says, with just the faintest glimmer of humour, “Guess who?”

And Joe feels the strange mix of adrenaline and dread, as he realises he’s just set both families on a collision course for each other all over again.

 _I should’ve stayed at home with Sophie,_ he thinks wryly.

Would’ve saved the money they’d spent on a babysitter, for a start.

 


End file.
